Those parents are on crack. I just don't understand people like that. A child's name doesn't make then different, not in a good way, anyway. In 2006, Angel was ranked 31 as the most popular BOYS name. It was only 160 for girls. Rediculous.

Christine,

I recognize that your baby's name is a huge thing. I remember all too well. But I am not sure that we can flash forward 24 years and know that your daughter's name being Heaven spelled backwards is going to be better or worse than the British porn star's name.

Now to be fair, I think the consultants are not the ones making up the "unusual" names. They're paying more attention to hard and soft sounds, linguistics etc.

But, it still seems a bit much.

Drew

I think we should pay celebrities like Demi Moore and Gwen Paltrow to name our kids. I mean, how can you argue with calling your next kid, "Apple"?

We have been through the name game twice in the last three years. In some ways, it is the worst part of the pregnancy! There were times I never thought we would agree on a name.

But is someways, it is also the best. It takes hours of conversation and discussion. The only agenda is the family and child. Can it get any more beautiful?

I can't count the number of times I have talked with my wife about all of the bad names parents brand their children with. I won't mention any of my least favorites here in order to protect the innocent, however, may I plant this one seed of thought into you expecting parents? Is that name you're thinking about a good ADULT name? Or is it just a BABY name (these would be those cute, cuddly, warm-fuzzy names)? Remember, your child will be a child for a fraction of his/her life... don't slap some wonky name on the kid just because it sounds cute. Here's a simple three-part test:

1. "Hello, I would like to introduce you to our new Chief Executive Officer, ___(name)______"

2. "Hi, my name is ____(name)____ and I would be a great asset to your company because...."

3. "Mom. Dad. This is my new fiance, ____(name)____.

Sound weird? Pick a new name.

p.s. to Art: "In some ways, it is the worst part of the pregnancy!" ... spoken like a man! ; )

Paul,

or showing my age....Moon Zappa.

Drew

I think every parent-to-be should be given a recording of the old Johnny Cash classic "A Boy named Sue." Just to remind them that having a unique, cute, odd name can be hell on a child.

Its unbelievable how you have to choose a unique name for your baby in order to distinguish him or her in the future. I've read this article as well as a few others on the subject.

"What next? Baby logos and color palettes?"

I was thinking something along the lines of this: http://carson.macksimpson.com/

:)

My father is named Michael Dean for a very specific reason: his parents wanted him to be a doctor. His first 2 initials are MD.

Basically...parents have all sorts of crazy ways to choose a name. I think the best way to look at it is by putting yourself in the shoes of your (future) child...

If it would be hard for you to live with that name, don't use it. Living can be hard enough, even with a cool name. There's no need to inflict any more pain than is necessary :)

"My father is named Michael Dean for a very specific reason: his parents wanted him to be a doctor. His first 2 initials are MD."

Ooh. Good one. My daughter's initials are FAB.

:)

Unbelievable! I completely understand why parents want to name their child uniquely but will not understand the extent parents go through to find that 'perfect' name. Great article!

I wander if I could get paid to name my kid after a major corporation. I’d name my kid Pepsi or Nike. I even think it’d be a good investment for a company.

"I wander if I could get paid to name my kid after a major corporation. I’d name my kid Pepsi or Nike. I even think it’d be a good investment for a company."

Devilishly clever. LOL!!

I had read about these baby-name consultants. Nothing surprises me. You can hire a potty-training consultant after all.

A related trend: buying a domain name for your baby as soon as you name him, after checking to be sure the moniker is unique. Gotta make sure MoonUnitZoeRoseSmith.com isn't taken!

Art,

Man, you asked for it with that comment. ;-}

Agreed...coming up with the names and talking about the whys for the yes and no column was very enlightening.

Drew

Chris,

Practical advice. You should bill us $475!

Drew

Carol,

Yes...that song rang through my mind as well. My mom has an unusual name and I grew up hearing how much she hated it as a kid. So when I became a parent, I knew I didn't want to repeat my grandparent's mistake.

Drew

Imagine the google rankings you'd have if your parents started a blog with your name as the URL when you were an infant.

Man...you'd own the ranking. Think what will happen in 10 years when you google carson!

Drew

Ryan,

So did your dad fulfill his parents' wishes?

You're right, being a kid is tough. Being the kid who gets teased or beat up because you have a name that rhymes with passing gas or sounds weird just does not add to the fun.

Drew

Dave,

I love the idea. If you can name a library, a hospital wing or a stadium -- why not a child?

Of course...what sort of guarantee do you have to offer? What if the child gets B's? Or ends up in braces?

Drew

Donna,

I've been hearing the "buy the domain name" for quite awhile. I wonder how many people own their own URL?

Drew

Well, it's too late for us...we named our 5 kids already, and since they all ended up being boys, we started sucking wind toward the end (in fact, on the Fiver, we couldn't decide between 2 names, so I figured we'd look at him when he was born and see which he "looked" like. Well, he looked like the other 4, so it was just a coin toss anyway!)

I think it will be simpler in the future to bypass all the problems and simply give our kids IP addresses. In fact, it can all be government issued - "Congratulations, Mr. and Mrs. Woodruff, your child is officially 119.63.24.7!"

"Class, 119.63.24.7 will now tell us what he did on his summer vacation!"

And this becomes their name, web address, telephone number, etc....for life!

Just kidding. Names are wonderful. But I do think that we may all end up with a personal IP address someday...

Sincerely,

85.43.224.9

I admit - I don't get it. Why is this century so obsessed with extravagence, over-indulgence and money waste? I may sound like a party-pooper, but this is a sad statement about our society. The gap between the haves and the have-nots has widened so drastically that so many have lost sight of basic values.

We are at war; there's genocide occuring daily in Darfur, 49 million Americans have no health insurance; the list could go on. Please take the money you'd be spending on frivolous uselessness (like naming consultants) and make a donation to a worthy cause.

End of rant.

Steve,

Ahh, love the practicality of your idea. Of course, the IP numbers are so long, we'd all end up going by our first digit, don't you suppose?

Drew

Elaine,

Hard to argue with any of that. I do wonder what's next.

Nameology for our pets?

Drew

Check out The Bad Baby Names Blog:

http://turabiannights.blogspot.com/

There's an old story about how uneducated new mothers were so glad to get through labor and so grateful to the doctors who delivered their babies, that they would ask the doctors what their names were and then name their children after the doctor.

The doctors, often young residents who didn't particuarly want namesakes running around in the community for years to come, would respond with outrageous names -- like Pete Zaria, Joe Mamma, Jose Canusi, etc.

The story ends by saying that this isn't as unusual as you might think. One of our presidents was actually named this way.

"Mrs. Truman, my name is Hairy Ass."

Ann -- see you CAN find anything on the web.

Michael -- that has all the stink of an urban myth, but it sure made me laugh out loud, true or not!

Drew

I don't think you need a consultant to pick a baby's name. It does help to study lists, and one possible list is those of angel's names. The more popular ones have been successfully used for years like Gabriel, Michael, and Daniel. But others are less well know, and you even have the opportunity to pick a unique one like Sofiel or Cathetel. For a complete list check out: http://www.cathetel.com/angels.htm.